By IlliniGuys Staff

November 9, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Berry Wallace scored 22 points and Gretchen Dolan added 18 as Illinois overcame a cold shooting 4th quarter to put away a pesky Illinois State team, 75-65 Sunday afternoon.

The Illini built an early 13-4 lead and never trailed in the game, despite the Redbirds opening the final period on an 11-3 run to close the deficit to 58-56. But Dolan nailed her first three-pointer of the season with 4:16 remaining in the game to end a drought that saw Illinois miss their first eight shots of the 4th quarter.

Wallace scored 14 of her points in the first half while hitting all six of her field goal attempts as Illinois (2-0) took a 37-31 lead into halftime. The sophomore - and lone returning starter from last year's NCAA Tournament team - added seven rebounds to follow up on her career-high 27-point and 11-rebound night in the season-opening win over Southeast Missouri State Tuesday night.

Dolan set a career high for the second game in a row, after scoring 16 on Tuesday. She came up big after halftime, putting up 12 of her points in the 3rd quarter.  The junior also led the Illini in assists for the second straight game with five in 38 minutes.

Freshman Cearah Parchment grabbed a team-best 9 rebounds to go with 9 points, though she struggled offensively with 3-of-14 shooting on the afternoon.

Iowa transfer Aaliyah Guyton made her Illinois debut after missing Tuesday night's opener. The former Peoria Central star went scoreless in five minutes of action in the first half.

Neveah Thomas led Illinois State (1-1) with 20 points as the Redbirds, who lose to the Illini for just the second time in their last six meetings. Coach Kristin Gillespie's team returns seven players from last year's squad that won 24 games and reached the semifinals of the WNIT. Illinois State has been picked to finish third in the Missouri Valley Conference this season.

Illinois, which saw 4,849 fans at State Farm Center on Sunday, will make its first road trip of the young season this Friday when they visit Oregon State (8pm CST, ESPN+).

Stay with IlliniGuys.com for complete postgame coverage from State Farm Center.